Jerry Seinfeld Told Lisa Kudrow ‘You’re Welcome’ for Friends’ Success

Entertainment TV Lisa Kudrow Recalls Run-In Where Jerry Seinfeld Told Her ‘You’re Welcome’ for ‘Friends’ ‘ Success Seinfeld and Friends were both part of NBC’s ultra-popular Must See TV primetime comedy lineup in the ’90s By Amanda Taylor Amanda Taylor Digital News Writer, PEOPLE People Editorial Guidelines Published on August 10, 2022 06:04 PM Share Tweet Pin Email Photo: GETTY (2) When Friends was on its way to becoming one of the biggest shows on the planet, fellow sitcom star Jerry Seinfeld didn’t miss an opportunity to tell Lisa Kudrow he had a hand in the show’s success. According to Kudrow, she once found herself at the same event with the Seinfeld star, who teased Kudrow about how his show was boosting Friends’ profile. “I remember going to some party and Jerry Seinfeld was there, and I said, ‘Hi,’ and he said, ‘You’re welcome,’ the actress told The Daily Beast. “I said, ‘Why, thank you … what?’” According to Kudrow, Seinfeld then told her, “You’re on after us in the summer, and you’re welcome.” As it happened, in Friends’ first season on air it followed the Helen Hunt/Paul Reiser sitcom Mad About You. But the series really “exploded,” according to Kudrow, during the summer of 1995 after NBC placed the show’s season 1 reruns after re-airings of Seinfeld, which was a certified hit in its sixth season. NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal/Getty Lisa Kudrow Names the Friends Costar She Would Do Anything for: ‘That’s Easy’ Back at the party in the ’90s, Kudrow graciously replied to Seinfeld, “That’s exactly right. Thank you.” And even as she takes stock today, the 59-year-old actress still acknowledges Seinfeld, 68, had a point. “Not to take anything away from the writing on Friends, or the cast, or how good Friends really was,” she said, “but the first season our ratings were just fine.” RELATED VIDEO: Lisa Kudrow and Drew Scott Sing ‘Smelly Cat’ in Exclusive Clip of Celebrity IOU That said, Friends’ pop culture longevity is all thanks to the show, which is still finding new fans nearly 30 years after its premiere. On a recent episode of Late Night with Seth Meyers, the Kudrow shared that her 24-year-old son, Julian Murray Stern, finally got around to watching a few episodes of Friends while he was sick with COVID. Kudrow called the moment “the most thrilling thing” as she recalled their conversation to Meyers, 48. “He called me up and said, ‘So I just watched the first two episodes. It’s really good, Mom,’” she recounted. “I said, ‘Thanks.’ He said, ‘Can I ask you some questions about that?’ I’m like, ‘Yes!’ I almost started crying. I didn’t think that anyone in my family liked that show.” “He was 5 when we were finished… but he did start watching when his friends at school started watching,” she continued. “He watched it and he was impressed.” Jennifer Aniston Wishes Friends Costar Lisa Kudrow a Happy 59th Birthday: ‘I Love You!’ Steve Granitz/WireImage Kudrow’s only complaint came when her son appeared to be genuinely surprised at why the beloved sitcom is so good. “He said, ‘It’s actually really funny,’” Kudrow said with a laugh, quoting her son. “‘I mean, the guys are so funny.’” After pausing for a moment to jokingly frown at Julian’s sentiments, Kudrow noted that her son did acknowledge how she was also funny in her role of wacky singer-songwriter Phoebe Buffay. “He’s like, ‘No, I mean you’re funny too,’” she said, before joking, “Never in my life have I wanted to tell my own kid, like, ‘F— you!’ I mean, I thought it, I didn’t say it.” “It’s not required that you’re a fan,” she added of her son’s relationship to her work. “You don’t have to like what I do. But don’t … be so demeaning!”